May 16, 2004
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Tourist spending in county rose slightly in 2003; Officials locally, statewide anticipate turnaround as economy, country recover  

Dave Blank, executive director of the Racine County Convention and Visitors Bureau, surveyed the recently released numbers for tourism money spent in the county and was neither pleased nor disappointed that numbers essentially stayed the same.

Tourism spending in Racine County increased less than 1% -- from $230 million in 2002 to $232 million in 2003 -- according to new figures released last week by the state Department of Tourism. Before 2001, the county had enjoyed rapid growth.

Considering the recovering economy and post-terrorist attack world, 2004 may be the first year when the county -- as well as the state and country -- sees actual growth.

"(This) looks to be a good year," said Cathy Keefe, speaking for the Washington, D.C.-based Travel Industry Association of America. "It's going to be the first year since 2001 that we're going to see increases across the board."

The association, which tracks domestic and international tourism, has projected that the tourism industry is expected to see gains in leisure, business and international tourism traveling -- all of which were affected after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Tourism is one of the top moneymaking industries in Wisconsin , and Racine County ranks as the 12th largest market for tourism. Kenosha , Waukesha , Ozaukee and Washington counties all showed minor increases in tourism expenditures. Milwaukee County , despite the Harley-Davidson's 100th birthday, saw a minor decrease in tourism.

Throughout the state, tourism spending remained flat, as growth averaged 1.25%.

The report was conducted by Maine-based Davidson-Peterson Associates, which specializes in tourism research. The study tracked money spent in Wisconsin from December 2002 through November 2003. Statewide, tourists spent $11.7 billion, the report said.

In Racine , it was a challenging year, in part because organizers had hoped that the Harley event would bring in more bikers. The county had set aside campgrounds, expecting about 7,000 bikers would use the site, when only about 1,000 showed up.

A smaller marketing budget didn't help either, Blank said.

Last year, the agency spent $101,000 in marketing, compared with as much as $182,000 in previous years.

Last year, the total budget for the bureau was $570,000, about $52,000 less than expected, Blank said.

After the Sept. 11 attacks, professionals cut down on their long-distance travel. That decision affected the county and bureau's budget, which heavily relies on hotel room taxes.

Sunny days ahead

Summertime is the most popular time for the county, with tourists spending $84 million during the season, accounting for 36% of the county's expenditures, the report said. Fall is the next most popular season, with travelers spending $53 million in Racine County .

New events and festivals this year include the Great Midwest Dragon Boat Festival July 9-10, in which racers convene on Lake Michigan with 20-person boats garbed in traditional Chinese colors. The bureau is working with the Chicago Chinatown Chamber of Commerce for the event, and Blank said it is expected to draw visitors from all over the Midwest .

The Racine Heritage Museum is planning " State Street : Racine 's Gateway Community," an exhibit on new research on immigration and settlement, focusing on the Armenian population.

During the summer, the museum also is planning the "Sunny Summer Stories," a series that starts June 16 and targets children and families who travel in the summer. Some of the stories deal with camping in the outdoors and settlers in Racine County .

"The museum's image as a family-friendly attraction goes a long way to improve Racine County 's image to its neighbors. These new programs coupled with our existing programs serves to make the museum a more potent attraction, to not only people within our basic market area but outside," said Chris Paulson, executive director of the museum. "We're trying to reach out to museums to give them something fun and exciting to do."

At the Racine Zoo, marketing and development manager Stephanie Kratochvil said the zoo plans to update its animal collection, adding a giraffe and two Andean bears.

"We're doing business as usual," she said. "We're making our programs bigger and better."